COCHRANE: No panic over NBL crowd dip

Of the seven returning teams in the second-year National Basketball League of Canada, only Moncton has posted an increase in average attendance.

Six of the returning franchises — Halifax, London, Montreal, Oshawa, Saint John and Summerside — have each seen drops in attendance, ranging from slight to significant.

Some are easy to explain, others aren’t. And the league’s eighth and newest entry, Windsor, Ont., has simply fared poorly.

A comparison of figures supplied by the league, from the NBL’s first season and the present season up to Jan. 27, shows the trend.

The Halifax Rainmen continue to lead with an average of 2,490 fans per game, down from last season’s 3,274. That’s not a surprising drop, considering the drastic turnover in the Rainmen lineup and the less impressive record.

I’ve heard from a few fans who, as I do, question the Rainmen attendance figures. Often, the number of fans in the building is obviously far lower than the announced attendance. The answer I get from the team is that officially announced attendance includes the occupied seats plus those bought by corporations and sponsors but not used.

League-leading London stands second in home attendance at 2,327. That’s down slightly from last season’s 2,553.

In the mid-class attendance averages, Maritime teams dominate. Saint John, at 1,990, is down slightly from 2,123. Moncton, at 1,682 this season, is up from 1,362 last year. Summerside is down to 1,900 from 2,488.

The remaining three teams have weak numbers by any standard.

The Quebec Kebs franchise that drew 957 fans per game last season was taken over by the league and moved to Montreal, where it has attracted an unimpressive 390 fans per game. The league expects a huge improvement there next season.

A couple of Ontario teams show serious cause for concern: First-year Windsor is drawing a weak 700 fans per game this season and Oshawa has fallen to a woeful 392 fans per game.

Considering that we’ve been told NBL teams need at least 2,000 fans on average to be
financially viable, should there be concern about these teams near the bottom?

“The good thing is they have committed owners, they have the (financial) means to sustain the teams over time while they grow their fan base,” Rainmen owner and NBL president Andre Levingston said of the lowest-drawing teams such as Oshawa and Windsor.

“They are facing the exact same things we all did in Year 1, which is trying to show their commitment to a city, put on a great show and grow a business.”

Levingston considers the strength of the league to be its ownership — investors who appreciate that it will take time before their teams show a profit. That stability is one of the
reasons why NBL supporters rank their league above most other minor league operations.

“That’s the one thing that’s so important, that you can bring in owners that can handle three, four or five years of losses,” said Levingston.

Clearly, the intention is for teams to operate in a financially smart way, aided by the league salary cap and cost-reduced divisional play, to keep expenses down and financial losses to a minimum.

Given the weak attendance numbers in some markets, I’m surprised there are no public signs of panic in NBL circles.

The strategy of choice — stick to the league model of keeping costs down, find new sponsors and fans in the local market, and then wait for the investment to pay off — must have widespread approval among owners.

Chris Cochrane is a sports columnist with The Chronicle Herald and the author of Inside the Game.